A Bouquet and A Promise
by aleido84
Summary: SPOILERS Byleth was broken after his father's dead, It's been a week since then and he was not the same. He was exploring the monastery until he noticed a figure in front of his father's grave. A couple of one-shots telling the story of a Bernie who changed a little before the time skip.
1. A bouquet

It's been a week since his father dead, Byleth hasn't come out of his room all the week until today, he didn't want to, he didn't have the energy to, everything made him remember his father. He never was someone who could be taken by his emotions but seeing the one person who he spent all his life with dying, caused something inside of him to die as well. All the nights he found himself crying, Sothis tried to comfort him but It was only effective until the next night. During those times, happy memories with his father went out, causing him to go back to the sadness he felt back that day, he didn't want to go out, but his students still needed him. He tried his best to teach them as always but he couldn't, and his students saw it too, they tried to comfort him, to distract him, he tried to smile at them, he didn't want them to worry about him, they had already enough in their lives to be worrying about him. Today was Sunday and as all Sundays after finishing his class plans for the week went out to explore the monastery, it took all his energy and an earful from the little girl inside his head to go out, gladly there was no one who could see a little girl scolding someone double of her size, otherwise It would be embarrassing.

During his walk around the monastery, he saw a lot of people mourning the death of his father, even the gatekeeper who was the happiest person he knew, didn't have the usual smile on his face. He talked with all the students around, some were sad, some gave their condolences to him which he thanked politely. Edelgard was a different though, she didn't give a pity look like the others, she just gave him a sad truth. "Mourning him forever won't bring him back teacher, you have to decide to continue living or stay like this forever, there are people here who care about you here and are still breathing, when you are ready to continue with your life I will be here waiting" she was harsh but It was the truth, he still had people who needed him, his students needed his professor to guide them. It's been just a few months but they had managed to make him feel something he didn't think he had… emotions. It was rare for him to feel happiness or feel proud about something, during his mercenary life, the only thing he needed to know was who to kill and when… no other thing was needed, they even gave him the nickname 'The Ashen Demon' for his cold face when he killed someone without a second thought.

But with them was different, he felt happy when his students aced on their respective class tests, he felt proud when they dodged gracefully a brigand attack and then counter it with ease, he was always looking forward the next day to see what crazy thing his students did the next day, what new impossible sleeping position would Linhardt try on his next lecture, how Petra would be in awe in the discovery of a new slang, how Dorothea would ask him for an advice about what to do with another horrible noble kid she was dating, how Ferdinand would try to prove to Edelgard he was better than her and Hubert would scold him for disturbing the empress tea time. Or how to help Caspar to get out of the next street fight he was in. He also felt sadness, knowing how much weight his students carried, after five months teaching them they started to open up to him, telling him their dreams, their past, and hopes for the future, they were so young and yet they had suffered enough for a lifetime, he promised to Sothis and himself to protect them until their dreams come true.

Maybe that was he needed now, his father wasn't for him anymore but he still had his students, they needed him, he couldn't stay like this forever, Edelgard was right. Lost in thoughts he didn't notice he was walking towards the graveyard where they buried him. He froze immediately when he noticed where he was, he tried to avoid this place during the week, he was not ready to see him again, he felt sweat starting to form on his forehead, his breathing faster, there was no one there, or so he thought. After a week of his father dead no one wanted to go there, his father was loved by a lot of people even though he wasn't the friendliest guy you would ever meet, and people didn't want to relieve the pain of loss again. He was going to another place until he noticed a lavender point in the distance, which caused him to approach it to see who was in his father's grave, silently avoiding to be noticed, he started to see who was there.

"Umm… hello Sir" the girl stuttered "I'm Bernadetta but my friends call me Bernie" she bowed to the grave "You probably don't know me, I was always inside my room reading a book or painting on my free time and you were scary so I couldn't make a word when you were near. I'm a student of your son Byleth, and I brought you these flowers" she then put them on the grave, a beautiful bouquet of flowers "their meaning is peace and promises, I hope you like them…" she then looked at the grave lost in thought, her body started to shake '_Come on Bernie you can do it, say it_' she said to herself' "I… grow them myself on the greenhouse, I hope you like them, you are probably wondering why I'm here, I just wanted to talk to you about your son…" she paused if someone saw her they would probably think she was crazy, they would probably hate her for approaching to the grave of a legend meanwhile she was just a low lifeform, a Bernie... but she needed to say this otherwise, she would not sleep well again, she needed to lift this weight out of her shoulders, she sat on the ground, hugging her knees.

"He has been mourning you since you left us, he isn't the same anymore, he doesn't give his lectures with the same patience and passion as before, during our sparing his eyes are distant like he is not here. After the classes he shut himself in his room, talking to no one, he doesn't come to eat with us during the meals, he doesn't even fish, could you believe it? a day where he doesn't fish even a little one?" her face then drawn a sad smile "It's funny, before meeting him I was like that, except for the fish part. I tried to be distant with everyone, I always ran after the lessons to shut myself in my room until the next day hoping not to come, It was normal for me, It's been my life since I could remember. But after he came here and started to teach us everything changed" she continued with a smile on her face "the class started to get better, he tried his best to everybody get along, during our missions he protected us and guide us to get the less amount of bruises on our bodies, with patience he taught us to be better on our specialties even though I didn't know what mine was. He was with us during lunches, just going along with our quirks, smiling a little at our jokes, and looking at us with earnest when we were telling a story. Even though he was our teacher, he treats us as allies, he has never looked down at us since we met him. After a few months, none of us can imagine our life without him. He is great, kind and cool" her cheeks started to get a little hotter.

"He has helped me a lot, you know, I was always at my room, avoiding everyone, avoiding to go out. Then he tried to get me out of my room, first, he tried talking with me through the door, our conversations were funny, one time he tried to get out of the room saying he found a delicious cake out, I opened my door slightly and saw he was lying, he was a meanie but I know he meant well. Then…" she chuckles a little " He tried to get me out of the room by force, he opened the door one afternoon and dragged me to the lake nearby, it was the most embarrassing moment of my life, everyone saw me being dragged like a sack of potatoes on his back, I tried everything to get free but I couldn't. He dragged me to see the sunset with him, It was beautiful, I froze the moment I saw it, It much different seeing it out than in your room alone. After that he made me promise to walk with him around the monastery once a week, otherwise, he would drag me like a sack of potatoes again" she pouted " and he was true to his word, the next time he dragged me out again. On his third time, I walked with him around, he talked with a lot of people, even students from other houses, he helped me little by little to talk with everyone, to be more open and don't let my dark thoughts win over me… my relationship with my classmates improved a lot, they were surprised to see me out, they couldn't believe that the old Bernie was out of her cave. You know, now I consider them my family, a little dysfunctional and crazy but still a family" she felt warm on her chest, seeing that now she enjoyed being out with her friends, to go to classes and listen to the lectures of her professor. "I don't think I deserve someone like him in my life... One day he visited in my room to go out for our weekly walk, he noted that I was sad, thinking about something, when he asked I don't know why but I told him about my past, about my father…" she paused, those memories were still fresh in her head, how many days she passed tied on her room waiting for her dad to untied her, how many days she would pass on her room seeing the green grass and the shiny sun from here windows, how many kids that tried to befriend her disappeared from the town days after… "I told him how ugly of a person I was, of how my father trained me to be the perfect wife and how I failed miserably to do that, how he gave up on me and ignored me, how worthless I was and you know what he did?" a tear dropped from her face.

"He hugged me and said that what my father said what all but lies, that I was a sweet girl, the best archer he has ever known, that I deserved only happiness in my life, and he knew I had done my best and he was proud of me of who I was becoming and I couldn't handle it… I cried, I asked him why he was so kind, why did I deserve such kindness from him, he just smiled at me and said '_just being you Bernie'_ I don't remember a happier moment than that" she cleared the tears from her face and stand up " I come here to thank you, for raising our professor, I'm sure you are proud of him, I admire him, just don't let him know that I said that..." she stuttered a moment "and I hope you are enjoying your time with your wife, I wish I could meet her, I imagine she was a beautiful person" her face made a determined expression "and don't worry about him, I promise I will protect him from any danger, even if it is from afar, I won't let anyone hurt him" her face turned crimson realizing what she just said "I mean we" she laughed nervously "I mean everybody in our class made that promise in secret one time when he was out retrieving some materials for the class, I meant It the least we could do after everything he has done for us, we would probably follow him to the end of the world" she stood up.

"That's why I brought you these flowers, what I wanted to say is… be at peace, we will protect him now, that's a promise." she bowed again "Thank you again for bringing him here, I don't know what would happen to us If he wasn't our teacher now. Goodbye Sir Jeralt" Gladly no one was there to hear her, she would die from embarrassment if someone had heard her.

Meanwhile, Byleth had listened to every word that came from Bernadetta, he couldn't believe what he just heard, his students really care for him, don't they? what was he doing? his father would never forgive him for mourning him all the time, his students needed him now, '_there are people here who care about you here and are still breathing'_ he remembered Edelgard words, just how much has he helped them without notice it? he felt tears coming from his eyes, they weren't out of sadness but happiness '_See what I told you, they love you to death'_ said Sothis in his head '_What are you waiting fool go talk to her, at least be grateful for the flowers she brought, they are rare here, believe me_' she reprimanded him.

Bernie was walking back to her room humming a song, she felt lighter after her talk with her professor's father, a little embarrassed but she felt content getting everything out of her system, she didn't notice a taller figure in her way and bump to it, when she opened her eyes to see who was, she felt that person to pull her into a hug.

"Thank you"

was his only words, she was shocked when she noticed it was her teacher who was hugging her, and he was hugging her tightly but gentle… did he hear all that? _'oh no…_' she thought to herself, her mind started to panic until she heard him sobbing, he was crying in front of her… she was shocked a second time not knowing what to do, her inner voice for the first time in her life said something useful '_what are you waiting for?, hug him back' _and she did, without complaining, she tried to soothe him by brushing his hair lightly, which caused him to sob more, she just closed her eyes, a song from her childhood came back to her mind and she started to humming it. After a while, the sobs stopped and a gentle low voice said

"Thank you"

They didn't break apart the hug, her eyes were closed, this was probably a dream that she would wake up at any moment. She would probably write it in her new novel and forget about it. She was still enjoying the hug, she still thought it was a dream, but since when dreams felt this warm? since when dreams caused to feel such gentle emotions on her heart?. Well, answers didn't matter now, what it mattered was her promise she had made to his father, and she would do anything in her power to keep that promise. Because of him she knew what friendship was, because of him she met a lot of wonderful people, because of him she saw beautiful places that will be in her memory forever, because of him she felt cared, because of him... she knew what love could felt like...

* * *

**A/N: While playing the game in this chapter I noticed Bernie was out (one of the few times it happened in the game) and talked to her, I thought it was sweet what she did for us, and noticing how our avatar was devasted by his dead, I just imagine what if we met her when she left the flower there. I hope you like it. I hope you are enjoying the game as much as I am.**


	2. A promise

**A/N: This was an idea that I had after finishing the previous one-shot, take it as a continuation of the previous one, this takes place at the fight for the monastery. I wanted to make Bernadetta a mix between her time skip and pre-time skip personality. I hope you enjoy this.**

* * *

Screams were all she could hear. She had assaulted the monastery, It was all for the world, the system based on crest should exist no more, nobility was obsolete, It only brings suffering to the people, she could no longer bear that suffering, she will change the world, it needed it, It didn't matter who was against her, even If they were her friends, they were allies of the church hence her enemies. What was most painful was the person commanding them, her teacher, he who she opened her heart, he who listened to her past, he who gave her comfort the nights where she couldn't sleep. She closed her eyes, she heard swords clashing, guts being cut, she could smell skin burning, It was all for her dream, for her purpose. There she was waiting for her friends to come, for him… to come. She didn't expect that person to be first to arrive there.

"Edelgard!" the person said readying the bow aiming to her face, but the arrow wasn't released waiting for her to respond, Edelgard opened her eyes, she met a petite purple figure, she was angry, she could see it on her face. "Of all the people who could arrive here I didn't expect you to be the first Bernadetta" said Edelgard a little surprised but she didn't show it "you were always on the backlines cowering in fear during our missions, always against killing, of all the people I didn't expect you to arrive first neither to have the courage to stand up against me alone." She knew her friend well, at first it was nearly impossible to establish a conversation with her, always blaming herself for everything, always saying that everyone hated her, jumping to a conclusion even before anyone said a word... Edelgard could hardly handle her to be honest, of all the people of her house she was the hardest person to bond with, It was until the arrival of Byleth that the lavender haired girl started to open with everyone of her house. It was then when Edelgard discovered how sweet the girl was, both of them share tea sometimes talking about plants and places to visit in all Fódlan, they talked about when the academy was over they could go with all their classmates to those places, before starting the life of adulthood, Edelgard was mesmerized with the idea, sadly she knew It was only an idea, a faraway dream, she had to change the world first, and then If she still had friends after this, she would enjoy the world with them. Bernadetta was one of her closest friends besides Hubert and Dorothea.

"Are you finally growing a spine, Bernie? I can say I'm proud of you" she mocked the girl with a smirk, '_please hate me_' she thought, maybe her friends hating her the killing would be easier, she would only kill them in self-defense, she knew it was dangerous, especially with someone unpredictable as Bernie. She saw one time how the girl disarmed a brigand in a blink of an eye and killed him stabbing one of her arrows on the brigand 's neck, only after to return to the cowering rabbit she was, not remembering what happened.

The girl in front of her only tensed more the arrow. "Why Edelgard" said the girl with anger "Why are you doing this? please, I need to know" pleaded the girl to her friend. Edelgard was for her a model to follow, elegant, beautiful, graceful, the best of her class, she was respected by all the academy, future empress of the empire and she was a great person to hang out with, she discovered that sharing tea a lot of times with her after class. It shocked her when Edelgard revealed herself as the Flame Emperor, how such a nice person could be responsible for all this? she thought there was to be some kind of explanation to all of this, It made no sense to her that her role model was evil.

"Bernadetta I'm doing this for everyone, you of all the people should know how much pain the crest and nobility brings, It's killing Fódlan slowly and It's all the church fault, for centuries they had done nothing to stop it instead they have been promoting it. I will bring peace, unify our people and set them free from those creatures that are manipulating everything from behind" said to her friend, this was her dream, her purpose and for it, she will do anything.

"So you are saying that you hurt him just for that foolish dream of yours?" retorted Bernadetta

The statement shocked the empress, she knew who she was talking about, her… teacher, the person who she opened her heart, revealing her dark past to him, the man who helped her house to be the best, the man who helped her to be friends with everyone, the man who showed her a new family in her house.

"Not only once but twice. Don't you remember how much he suffered when her father was killed, we almost lost him for that, he was not the same for a complete month, he was a shadow of himself, It took all of us to bring him back. You did most of the job though, whatever you said to him helped a lot. During all these months I notice both of you grew closer, late at night when I couldn't sleep I could hear your screams from your nightmares, seconds later I always heard footsteps approaching your room… It was him, wasn't it?" asked the lavender girl

Edelgard was without words again, a faint blush appeared on her face, the light coming from the fire didn't let it be shown. It was embarrassing, but she had nightmares, a lot of them were living her childhood again, screams of her siblings, the experiments on her body, rats lurking everywhere… after she told him about her nightmares when she had one he usually was at her door a minute later, without no one to notice, he would usually enter to her room to gave her comfort and stayed with her until she was sleeping again. It was something that was embarrassing but comforting, she couldn't deny it, It was a nice feeling to know there was someone there when the nightmares approached.

"So It was true" the girl exhaled, relaxed her muscles a bit "It's so him to be like that, he always worries about us, he can't handle see us suffer" the girl chuckle a bit, remembering all the things her teacher had done for her to get out of her room, to talk with the people of the monastery, how worried was when some of them had a bruise or wasn't feeling well, even though his face didn't show it, his actions speak volumes of his care for them.

"But It didn't stop there" said Bernadetta "You two grew closer, having tea after classes, you would usually smile when you were speaking with him, and he did the same too, both of you acted more like old friends rather than teacher and student " this wasn't something new for any of the class, even Caspar the densest of all could see it, Edelgard and Byleth were really good friends, he always took tea or lunches with them but when it was with Edelgard, they could see him smiling a little bit and the cold expression of Edelgard disappeared as soon as their professor talked to her. Dorothea started to _"ship them"_ and gossip about them, after explaining the meaning of shipping to Petra she joined her, making plans for the two of them to be alone, Bernie for her part didn't make a big deal out of it, she was happy to see her friends happy, love is something nice to have, she always enjoyed to read about it in the stories of her books, dreaming about a happy ending for her, even though It was impossible for someone to fall for her, everything was normal until… "And you two met each other on the goddess tower"

Edelgard was surprised, she thought they were alone that night, that night was for the first time they were alone with no one to around, they just watched the stars and done some small talk about their life in the monastery, enjoying each other company, for some reason she felt at peace when she was with him, she felt like she could tell him anything, do anything and he will be there for her, it felt nice… "how did you…" asked the empress

"I was there" interrupted the girl " I'm not good with crowds, and no one was there so I chose that place to be alone, when I notice someone was approaching I hid myself, I'm sorry by the way" that night she could never forget it, she saw the two of them talking, they looked really good for each other to be honest, like the couple on her books that made her scream _'just kiss her already'_. This time, It was different, a new feeling emerged from her that day; jealousy. For the first time in her life she felt jealous, she didn't want to, but she felt something piercing her hearth, anxiety invading her body. She, unconsciously, wished that it was her there with him instead of her, she wanted to him smile for her. After some time Edelgard said farewell to him, as soon as she disappeared, he found Bernadetta in her hideout, It was almost like breathing for him to find her after she tried to avoid their weekly walks, he would always find her even in the most distant spots of the monastery.

She apologized, explaining she only wanted some time alone, he just accepted her apology, then looked at the sky and asked her If she wanted to watch the stars with him for some time. She accepted in a whim, both of them just sat on the floor and watched the starry sky, then she saw him... a faint sweet smile drawn on his face looking at the sky, her heart skipped a beat at that moment, '_so that's what she sees everytime they talk_' she thought '_stupid Bernie, she is your friend, friends should not be jealous of each other_' she said to herself, she should just enjoy the night, let those stupid thoughts go away, but she knew what was happening to her and she didn't like it, '_no, you can't stupid girl, you can't have a crush on him, you are ugly, stupid, boring, a shut-in, unmarriable girl and..._'

"Do know about the legend?" he asked her interrupting her train of thought

"What legend?" she asked him. He then explained that If a couple swears a vow there in that night the goddess will grant them a wish. "Oh" she responded surprised "I didn't know about that , I supposed that's what happens when you are in your room all day hehehe" he just laugh a little and shook his head "that's the Bernie we all know" He said making her blush "If you could, your vow would be to live a life in solicitude in your room" she felt embarrassed at his statement "You know me well, huh?" she then stood up, raising her fist to the sky "Well that's the old Bernie, my new vow is to everyone in the class to be together, like a family" he looked surprised at her, Bernadetta was a surprise after surprise for him, after getting her out of her shell, he saw the great girl that was inside, someone who cared for her friends deeply, someone talented in arts and loved plants, someone who wanted everyone to be happy, he smiled at her "Well that's something that I can vow too" he chuckled a little, making the girl blush even more, in her wildest dreams she could imagine herself being so energetic, so full of life... and It was all thanks to him, even though she didn't deserve it, a small smile was brought to her face, she sat on the floor again "Say, professor, could we stay like this for a while? It's a beautiful night and I like the atmosphere here " she said which her teacher completely agree, a comfortable silent invaded the place, she hugged her knees, close to her face, hiding the smile and the hot mess that were her cheeks. a small 'thank you' was said to the goddess...

"It doesn't matter now" said Edelgard, _'that's the past_' she thought to herself "my dream is first".

"Do you know what happened to him after we discovered you were the flame emperor?" retorted her friend "Do you know how much he cared about you? Do you know how hurt he was that the person who he was the closest was responsible for killing his father?!" shouted the girl's anger increasing.

"I am not responsible for that Bernadetta" said Edelgard, to be honest, she didn't have any idea about the plans of killing Jeralt, she didn't know most of the plans of those who slither in the dark, she just used them as tools when she needed them. It pained her, to see him suffer during that month, she had been his strength at that time, as he had been for her. She felt useless that she couldn't avoid such tragedy, but in the end, sacrifices were needed, and she already knew the bloody path she was walking.

"Even If that's true, you sided with them, not with us… your friends, your family, the people who cared about you. Do you know how many times Dorothea cried for you? Do you know how lifeless, lost Ferdinand was? How hurt I feel that instead of talking to us about your problems, instead of letting us help you, you just decided to betray our trust… his trust" It pained her deeply, If only she knew, If only she wasn't so useless, If only she had watched the signals instead of worrying about impossible scenarios where everyone would kill her. Because of that, she saw the person she cared about crumbling a second time.

* * *

After Edelgard teleported herself with Hubert, Byleth wasn't the same. He reverted back to the month when his father was killed, only this time anger and sorrow were present on his face more. Hell, everyone was either shocked or depressed, their leader, their friend was the enemy now, threatening the peaceful life that they had. She didn't know what to do, she didn't want to see everyone like that. It was not normal, this wasn't supposed to happen, they were supposed to graduate, to live a peaceful life, doing annual meetings between them at the monastery to remember the youthful days there. Lost, she visited the place where she left flowers two months ago… Jeralt's grave.

"Hello again, Sir Jeralt" said to the grave, no one was there this time, she checked two times just to be sure "It's Byleth again, he... we discovered who the Flame Emperor was, It was Edelgard, and she… was close to him, like really close" she remembered that night at the goddess tower, both of them laughing, talking like they had all the time of the world, only remember it made her feel heavy. "Everyone is sad about this, and I don't know what to do, I'm just the useless girl who just knows to use a bow, and I can hardly hit the targets during practice" she looked at the ground "Thanks to everyone, I am not scared of everything, thanks to everyone, I no longer fear people, thanks to them I finally think myself as a person… Thanks to him… I want to make everyone happy" 'be honest with yourself' her mind said 'you don't want him to suffer anymore, she has all the fault for this, she had him and still she threw him like a used doll' she clenched her fists, what she was about to say was an ugly true, gladly no one was there to hear her say it, she didn't want to feel that way, but all the kindness she received, all the help and attention, she couldn't help herself "I want to make him happy... especially him, he deserves it, I want to be by his side, I always feel like I can do anything If he's with me" her cheeks blushed, she finally confessed it, her ugly true, one that no one should know "But how? Sir Jeralt... how do I do it?" she pleaded, tears coming from her face "I can't just see him suffer like this, I can't handle seeing my classmates suffer, I want to be strong, I want to help them, but I can't. I just can see them from the distance, that's always been my job…" she clenched her fist again, never in her life she felt so useless, so helpless, she was not strong as Edelgard, as beautiful as Dorothea, as fast as Petra, as intelligent as Hubert, she was just... Bernie, a girl that months ago was afraid of holding a wooden stick, who just recently discovered how to talk to people, how to be a decent human being.

A memory flooded her mind, It was him after she confessed her past to him, she asked him why he was so nice to her, what she had done to deserve it, he responded '_Just being you Bernie'_. That's when an idea came to her, If he was nice to her just for being her then he and everyone will have the full package. Her face light up "I know what to do" wiping her tears and determination erupted inside of her she started to walk to the greenhouse not before leaving the same flowers that she left months ago "Thanks again, for listening, Sir Jeralt" the girl thanked the grave, he would probably feel at peace knowing that his son was in good hands.

She found him in his father's room, she quietly approached him, he was sitting on a chair with his back facing the entrance, she saw he was looking deeply at a ring he was holding, sobbing, murmuring '_why It had to be you'_. Her heart broke even more, _'so my gut was right, he felt something for her_' she thought, she shook her head, It didn't matter now, what it mattered was for her to be with him, for her to be his support now, he needed her.

"Hey Professor" she said

"Oh hey Bernadetta" he wiped his tears, hiding quickly the ring on his pocket

"I brought you flowers" those flowers were the last, they had taken months to grow, they required a lot of care, but that didn't matter, for him It didn't matter

"It usually happens the other way around" he joked, usually he was the one to give flowers to everyone every time they grew from his harvest "This must be the first time someone had brought me flowers" she gave them to him, he looked at them, surprised "are these?"

"The same I gave to your father months ago" she answered "You probably remember what it meant?"

"Peace and promises, right"

"Yeap, they are Bernie's specialty" she chirped

"Well you are the specialist in flowers of our class, what are we making a promise of?" he asked

"What were you doing here, Professor?" she changed the subject If she wanted to him to tell her what he felt she had to take him by surprise.

"I…" he stuttered surprised by the girl sudden question

"You are still sad about her, right?" she came closer looking at his eyes

"Yeah…" he didn't know why but he couldn't lie to Bernadetta's deep grey eyes, it felt like they were piercing his soul "She was a dear friend, I care for you all the same but…"

"She was your ally, someone who you could open your heart and your worries, someone who you could always find an answer when you had problems" interrupted the girl

"How did you..." he was surprised, how she could read him so well, the truth was that she too had someone like that in her life, but he didn't need to know.

"You are hurt, hurt that someone so close to you, hurt you so much…" she knew, she knew how it felt, Edelgard was a close friend of her too

"Yes… before I met all of you, I was emotionless, I couldn't feel anything, but for some reason when I started to teach you and watched all of you grow, I felt happiness, I felt proud of you, angry at you, but this is the first time I feel betrayed, hurt by one of you and I…" he was interrupted by a sudden hug from the lavender haired girl, he yelped in surprise.

"It's ok professor, let it all out, I… everyone is feeling the same as you, let us be sad together, don't let the loneliness consume you, we are your students and your friends, even I whatever is worth"

For the third time, he let the tears come from his eyes. This was the second time he was crying in front of her, he felt the warmth of the hug, he let that warmth to fill his soul, he was so useless, how he was crumbling while this little girl was suffering too, she was her friend, she was too betrayed "What kind of professor I am, this should be the other way around" he said scolding himself. He felt so lost, he missed his father, he missed Sothis, he would trade this new power of his just to heard the little goddess call him an idiot child again, or tell him to go to sleep or tell him what to do, she was sassy but she was a dear friend to him. For his father, to ask him about his day as a professor in the monastery, to spar with him one more time, both pieces that had been in his life for so long were now gone.

She broke apart the hug, she looked at him in the eyes again, like a mother scolding a child "Professor, you are human too, you have the right to feel sad, angry, happy, they are emotions, they are what made you… well, you" she had never comforted someone, she had just tried what it felt right, putting all the timidness, the fear, the embarrassment she could feel aside. "What it's not fair is for you to shut yourself apart from everyone, we need you with us, so please let's get out for some fresh air and meet everyone... or do I need to get you out of this room by force and walk you around the monastery?" she clenched her fist, waving it at his face in an attempt to appear mad but she was actually just pouting...

He smiled, for the first time in days, he smiled. It was silly really, for her to do the same thing he did when they met, he was imaging him being held like a sack of potatoes by a girl smaller than him, It was funny actually, he let out a small chuckle at the absurdity of his mental image.

"You are smiling" she said surprised, a wide grin appeared on her face "You are actually smiling" this was the second happiest moment of her life, she actually made him smile "You are the best Bernie" she said it without thinking, jumping in excitement, she immediately closed her mouth with her hands _'and you just had to ruin the moment Bernie_' she thought to herself.

He then laughed, like never before. How did she do it? how she could be so cheerful in a moment like this, he like that of her, he was glad to have helped her those months ago, this was the second time she had given him comfort on his worst. The first was on his father's grave, when he cried and hugged her, listening to how the girl talked to his father, the beautiful flowers she had brought, how much she cared for him, when he noticed, he had embraced the girl in hug, tears coming from his face, in shock he broke the hug apart only for the girl to snap from reality and run directly to her room. He later apologized for his outburst and she just brushed it off timidly saying It was ok, and she was glad to be his shoulder.

"Thank you, Bernie, you are really the best" he said with a smirk on his face, It was funny how just saying that caused the girl's face to turn red as a tomato. Her mind was a mess now, not knowing what to say she just stuttered.

"I… I just keeping our vow Professor" he then remembered the vow they had made that night before the tragedy, where they promised to be together as a family, all the class, and family was always there for each other, even more in their worst, and where was he now?, alone when the others were feeling the same, and for the second time she brought him back "Well at least one of us is keeping it" he said, his face form a sad smile.

"Professor, everyone needs you, you are the one who we decide to follow, you are the one who won our trust not her… we need our professor, the one who always cheer us up when we are feeling down, the one who shared meals with us, the one who we opened our hearts to, we need our friend back" she said truthfully, he stood up from his chair, she was right, they needed him, If he felt sad, he would share that sadness with them, because besides his students they were his friends, his family.

"You are right" he said wiping again the tears of his face, "I think we should have a meal with everyone and some tea, what do you think?"

"That's a great idea" she said, he was back, she couldn't believe it worked "But before that, I want to give you two things" she said while looking to the floor embarrassed '_this is it Bernie_' she thought to herself.

"Oh, what is it?" he asked, curious, immediately she gave him a doll, it was a replica of her, just that the hair was straight and had purple clothes instead of the monastery uniform. It was a hobby of her to make dolls when she was little, she practiced her sewing with that, she was really decent at it, to be honest to herself

"You can do whatever you want with it, It's for you to remember that whatever you are, you are never alone, not anymore, this little Bernie will be there for you because If I can't keep my second promise then she would help you with your problems" she knew that in war, anything could happen, in their missions she saw the cruel reality of it, in any moment she or he could die.

"And what promise it's that?" asked him curious again, with what will she surprise him now?

"When you feel alone, sad or that you need someone to listen to your burdens, I will be there for you, I know I'm not worth much but at least would listen to them, I promised to be at your side as your bow, always watching you, professor… no... Byleth" she said looking to his eyes '_this is enough, for now, Bernie'_ she said to herself

He was without words, Bernadetta was truly someone special "You are worth a lot Bernie" a gentle smile form on his face "Thank you for everything" she saw the warm his eyes displayed now, she had done it, and damn she felt proud of herself, sadly her stomach had other ideas, a gentle growl came from it, causing him to chuckle and shake his head

"Shall we go to eat?" he asked

"Su… sure" she said '_stupid stomach making me look bad_' she muttered while walking at his side to the dining hall.

Meanwhile he was in deep thought, remembering the words the girl just said, remembering what happened at the grave of his father, he remembered a gentle touch on his hair, a soothing song being sung, a warm hug from her, and a promise that brought a smile to his face, the little doll she gave him to not feel loneliness anymore... Deep inside a warm feeling was forming in his heart...

* * *

"I know" said the empress, she knew she had hurt them, but she long ago steeled her heart to fight against the beasts that were behind all this bloodshed and suffering of the people "but even so"

"Do you love him?" asked the archer bluntly, causing a feeling of dread to the empress, since the first time they have met, she had seen him as someone different from the rest. He saved her life without knowing who she was, his stoic face, his mysterious past all picked her attention on him, always keeping an eye on his actions, even ordering Hubert to stalk him, to see if he could be a spy to ruin her plans. Oh how further she was from the truth, he was like a gift from the goddess, he only brought good things to her life, helping her with her house, with her friendships, teaching her how to enjoy life for the first time in years of her life, they both shared the same cursed crest that had brought so much pain in her life, they both were tired of conflict, they wanted a peaceful life.

To be honest, she wanted for him to be at her side, she even asked him to be with her during her coronation, to be honest, she needed him, he was her anchor, not letting her drown in the madness which was the path of her dream, into the madness that was her life. But It was selfish, she knew that, she knew his answer when Rhea ordered him to kill her, after all, the blood of his father was on her hands, she didn't do anything to avoid it, she betrayed his trust, his smile, she betrayed that day on the goddess tower where she confirmed her feelings for him. She deserved his hatred, his anger but she couldn't die, not now, after all, It was only the beginning. Bernadetta doesn't need to know that, no one needs to know that.

"No" she lied "he was just a tool for my plans" she lied again '_why are you lying?, stop lying'_ pleaded a girl inside of her mind '_we are in love of him, he understands us, he is the same as us, please El stop this_' she didn't listen, focused on the lavender girl in front of her.

"You demon!" shouted the archer, releasing all her anger, she let the arrow loose, aiming to the empress's head, in instinct Edelgard released a hand axe she had on her right hand, she used such force that It parried the arrow, like it was nothing, continuing its trajectory to the little archer.

Bernadetta's body was frozen, her legs weren't moving, the axe was approaching aiming to her head '_Oh no_' she thought '_At least I made him smile'_ closing her eyes waiting for her death. She waited but she didn't feel any metal piercing her head, only a loud cling. She opened her eyes, looking a sword-like whip in front of her, axe at her side, both girls surprised.

"Bernie, I didn't mean..." said the empress looking at her in horror, It was an accident, just experience kicking in her system.

"Edelgard" interrupted a male voice, the sword returning to its original form

"Professor!" exclaimed Bernadetta, he was next to her, looking at her.

"Are you okay?" asked Byleth, eyes full of worry, he was glad he arrived in time, he couldn't afford to lose another student from his carelessness.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I didn't expect you to arrive so soon" she broke formation, seeing Edelgard from afar blinded her in anger, carefully sneaking out of the enemy forces and killing any enemy who could see her from the distance.

"You are full of bruises" replied her professor, in truth she didn't notice, she didn't care, she only cared for answers, for the knowledge of why her friend betrayed them, she ignored any arrow that came to her direction retailing to anyone who approached her. "We will make Lindhardt see them after this" he readied his sword. In truth he chased her as soon she saw her running to Edelgard's direction. A feeling of dread invading his body the whole time, he couldn't lose anyone, not anymore, he won't handle the pain again, even more knowing that he would lose the person who brought him back from the sorrow last time.

"Teacher…" a knot formed on Edelgard's throat, he was here in front of her... her heart skipped a beat, following by a feeling of sorrow and dread on her stomach. She had to fight him, for her goal, for Fódlan's future.

"Edelgard, stop this, this only lead to the death of thousands, an unnecessary bloodshed" he pleaded to his old student, now his enemy, If there was only a tiny part of the girl he knew, she would listen to him, after all, they were supposed to be allies and... friends.

"If only you could be persuaded by my words or deeds, I would have done anything to have you by my side" she said preparing a silver axe on her free hand, this is it, her final wall to her dream, the same wall that had brought warm and comfort the last months in the academy. She was ready, '_whatever it takes_' she said to herself.

"So this is it then" he whispered '_you won't take anyone precious to me anymore_' he thought. Because of her and her allies, he lost his father, because of them he lost Sothis, because of them he almost lost Bernadetta. He took his usual stance.

Edelgard look at his eyes, they were filled with anger, with sorrow, It was logical after all she and her allies had done to him, even so, It hurt her that those same eyes saw her with happiness and warmth some time ago.

"Bernie will you fight by my side?" he looked at her again, she looked at him in the eyes, they were so encouraging, so beautiful, a blush appeared on her face by his words "Of course professor" she stuttered, preparing her bow "always…" she whispered, he didn't heard the last part.

Edelgard looked at that situation, she looked how his eyes changed when he saw Bernadetta, It was the first time she had heard him called her friend _'Bernie'_, the empress felt jealous for some reason, '_It could've been us_' said her consciousness inside of her mind, '_we could be fighting at his side.._. _but at least he won't be alone in his path… like us…_' her consciousness finished. She could see the way Bernadetta blushed at him, everything made sense know. She raised her axe pointing it at him, It didn't matter, she long lost the right to feel anything, even more, when she was so close to her goal.

For Byleth part, he gazed again at the empress, memories they had together flowed his mind, making his heart feel heavy, It wasn't fair but since when his life was fair?, a gentle hand tapped his shoulder "Professor?" It was Bernadetta looking at him worried "Remember our promise" he came back from his trance, he looked at Bernie and shook his head, this wasn't the moment to be lost in thoughts, this fight decided the future of Fódlan, and he had already made a lot of promises to keep, for those promises, for his students, and for everyone he held dear he would fight against anyone or anything that dangered them. For everyone's future, he will win this fight. With one last look at the lavender haired girl, he charged against the woman who was once his closest ally, only with the hope that this would bring a bright future to his students, to his friends, to his family...

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**A/N: So what do you think? Did you like it? let me know, I will probably write two more of this someday... (I have to finish two more routes, so probably after that) meanwhile take it as completed in case I don't make them. I hope you guys have a great day, thanks for reading.**


	3. A reunion

**Hello every one, here is another chapter of A Bouquet and A Promise, bringing you the right amount of fluff you needed, I'm currently on chapter 15 of the Chruch route (that's the last one for me) and I have been reading new fics coming from here. It amaze me that no one had written a story where Sothis gains a physical body during the academy part of the story, I don't know, It will be an interesting premise but difficult to pull. Also thanks a lot for the review, I'm happy when I read any review from you guys, thanks for your follows and favorites too. I hope you like this chapter as the other, It was really difficult to write at the beginning. Well, I hope the rest of your day is awesome whatever you are!**

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They had defeated Edelgard, but somehow she managed to escape, not only that, she also sent her full army against them, the sheer number of soldiers could be seen from the distance, Bernadetta couldn't see the end of them, It made her panic, her body was frozen in fear by the sheer number of enemies they were against. Byleth reacted better than her, ordering everyone to retreat back to the monastery, they followed his orders without a word just looking at the army they were against.

They would make a last stand to defend their home, all her class was determined but uneasiness could be seen on their faces, no one wanted to die, but also they didn't want to lose, losing meant to put all Fodlan in danger, It would generate a turmoil in all the continent, war would spread everywhere and innocent lives would be put at risk, It was hopeless, how a small number of knights and students could stand against that vast number of trained soldiers? They would be overwhelmed in no time. The feeling of hopelessness invaded her body, she noticed Dorothea was holding her hand, whispering a mantra _'everything will be okay, we will get through this'_ she was shaking, Bernadetta noticed she was shaking too… To her far left she noticed Petra looking at her bow, the assassin was lost in thought, her hands shaking trying to repair her bow "Petra come here" said Dorothea in a calm voice which Petra followed, as soon as she was near, Dorothea pull her and Bernadetta in a hug, still whispering her mantra.

"Dorothea have you seen Pe…?" It was Ferdinand looking for his classmates, with him was Lindhardt and Caspar, the three of them were shocked at the scene before them, Dorothea looked at him with pleading eyes, extending her arm to him. He simply nodded and motion Caspar and Lindhardt to follow him, the three of them joined the hug. Dorothea started to sob, Petra's lips were quivering, Caspar was cursing under his breath. Just a few moments ago they fought and killed soldiers, people of their country, people with family waiting for them. They could still hear the screams of agony from them, they could remember flesh being burnt and cut, heads flying in the air, the smell of death in the air.

This was different from the bandits or the villains they had to slain, they were after their lives or were putting in danger the life of common folk. This time they had killed people who just were fulfilling their duty, just following the orders of their emperor. For the first time in their lives, the students of the black eagle house tasted war and the foul taste it left on the mouth, the smell of blood still hanging on their noses. They felt guilty, sad, scared by the huge army ahead, even with months of battle experience, in the end, they were still children, who were scared, confused, angry by the events that lead them to this. They felt so lost just two months ago their lives were so normal... How this came to be? How they were now fighting against their friend who was the leader of their country? How they were all bathed in the blood of the soldiers they had killed just a few minutes ago?.

This was too much, they tried to avoid the feeling of dread, disgust, sadness… focusing on saving what had been their home these few months, focusing on staying alive. But now, at the tense calm after the battle, those feelings could no longer be contained, not anymore, even more, when this two last months a lot of unfortunate events happened to them in a row, seeing their professor lost in grief, seeing their leader betraying them, fighting against their nation... It started with Dorothea, tears invading her face weeping softly, soon, Petra and Caspar followed, and in a few minutes, the remaining six students of the black eagles' house were crying, hugging each other, freeing all the emotions they had been keeping in check for the sake of the group. Frustration, sadness and despair, all went out of their system.

There were only six of them there, even though some students joined their house after a while, It wasn't the same, the bond that was within the original members was something difficult to reproduce. After all, they were friends... a family, and when families faced hard times, they would be for each other, sharing the pain and sorrow as much as happiness and success. It was Ferdinand between sobs and cleaning his nose who started to talk again "Whatever happens… I want you to know that you are dear to me, all of you are my best friends…" Dorothea continued between sobs "even a commoner like me, Ferdie?" she joked trying to improve the mood "Especially commoners like you Dorothea" he smiled "Oh, I don't know If I can be friends with a bee" she retorted "Hey, I'm not a bee" Ferdinand responded which caused Caspar to snort. One day for some reason Dorothea started to compare him with a bee and called him 'noble bee', they didn't ask why, but after seeing him following Dorothea with sweets, as a bee giving honey to its queen, the nickname stayed, even once Caspar called him Ferdinand Bee Aegir during training which caused a chase around all the monastery.

Soon Petra followed giggling, Lindhard let out a small laugh, both Dorothea and Ferdinand draw a grin on their faces. "If we lose, I will be missing you... all of you" said Petra with a sad smile. "Hey we won't lose Petra, we have been through worse and we have always won" said Caspar. Lindhart soon followed "Yeah, we just have to work together and follow our professor lead, we will make it" he let out a yawn, he had been healing some soldiers before Ferdinand found him. For Bernadetta's part, she wanted to believe her friends, even if her mind was saying otherwise, after all, they have been through a lot together these months, and, she had made a vow already to her professor that day at the goddess tower. She will fight for them, for her friends, even if it meant to kill a hundred soldiers If that meant seeing her friends smile and joke again so be it If she had them… him by her side she would do anything. "Yeah, we will get through this… together" said the girl stuttering a little, surprising her friends, It was usual for her to drift in negative thoughts, thinking in the worse possible situation, but now she was believing in them, smiles were drawn in their faces, If Bernadetta was thinking they will get through this then It was possible, with the professor by their side they could make anything possible. But soon life would prove them wrong...

At the same moment they heard a huge roar, following it, they saw a giant white dragon flying through the sky, attacking the enemy forces, killing all the troops coming to their way. It was miracle, maybe there was a chance for them to win, maybe they didn't even need to fight anymore, soldiers of the church were cheering at the miracle before them, the immaculate one returned to save them in this moment of need, with it at their side they would win the battle...or so they thought. Suddenly three giant beasts appeared to attack the dragon, who tried to fight back but soon It was overwhelmed as more beasts were approaching it. At the distance, the black eagle students saw their professor running to help the dragon, the sword of the creator at his hand. He was trying to save the dragon from the beasts, launching his whip-like sword to them, killing some by piercing their heads with just one swing of his sword, it helped to the mysterious white dragon to gain ground again. The dragon roared and nodded as a gesture of thanks and continued fighting the remaining beast. They were without words, admiring just how powerful their professor was that he could slay the demonic beasts by himself. The moral of the church of Seiros began to increase, enemy soldiers started to run for their lives, It looked the fight was near the end, finally an end for this nightmare.

At the distance a white-haired man smiled, how delightful to give hope to the enemy just to crushed in the last seconds, he approached both Byleth and the mysterious dragon, his students were confused by the sudden appearance of the man, whom as It was a game, created giant sphere of pure black energy and throw it directly to their professor who took the hit, trying to reflect it but with no result. Fear consumed their faces as their professor was pushed to the end of the cliff, only to fall to the emptiness of the abyss. All of them screamed his name as their beloved professor fell.

For Bernadetta, something broke inside of her, tears came to her face, her eyes were dead. Her life moved like a blur after that, she only remembered she was running with everyone to retrieve their belongings and escaped the monastery as soon as they could, they had lost, the dragon disappeared after their Professor fell from the cliff, Seteth ordered them to escape as soon as possible to avoid any unnecessary bloodshed. Dorothea and Petra were guiding her to who knows where she didn't care, her mind was empty, trying to process the idea of her professor being dead, she didn't want to believe it, It would be unfair, It would be a cruel joke for him to die like that, but she saw him falling to the abyss after receiving such powerful magic attack, there was no way he could have survived, but also he has proven to win against the odds before… The girl's mental war was stopped by Dorothea who shook her up, asking her what she wanted for dinner, returning to reality, she answered that she would eat whatever they had. Dorothea sit at her left, giving her a bowl of soup, she didn't notice Ferdinand was eating at her right, they were sitting at a log and in front of them was a campfire, she could hear the crickets singing, she could see the full moon at its peak in the sky, How long had she been out? How did they get here?.

"You finally came back to us Bern" said Dorothea

"It's expected, after what we all saw" said Ferdinand with a sour expression "After all you were the closest to him..."

"Wha… What do you mean?" Bernadetta asked, a light tone of pink emerged from her cheeks. Dorothea just smiled sadly

"You were the one who brought him back after Edie's betrayal, right?" asked Dorothea

"I… what does it matter now? he's no longer with us..." she replied while looking at the ground, tears started to appear on her face, she started to weep "If only I hadn't left his side, maybe I could've pushed him from that attack, maybe I could've saved him… stupid Bernie" If only she wasn't a coward If only she hadn't left his side maybe he would be with them eating soup, giving them tips on how to improve from the previous battle...

"Bernadetta…" Ferdinand looked at her, he put his hand on her shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze "The soldiers of the church searched for him after we managed to escape, but they didn't found the body…"

Bernadetta's eyes opened wide "So that means…"

"Yes Bernie, he is still alive, somewhere, but we don't know where" replied Dorothea "The search will continue tomorrow at the first hour, we will help with it, Do you want to come?" asked Dorothea

"Of course Dorothea, I have to…" _'after all, is my fault'_ she thought to herself, guilt invaded her thoughts

"Great, then, eat up and go to sleep, our tent it near that tree with the funny face, you, me and Petra will sleep there, Ferdie and I have to check how everyone is doing" she said goodbye to Bernadetta, Ferdinand did the same and followed her. She looked at her soup, feeling the warm both her dinner and fire in front of her gave her "He's alive…" she muttered, maybe they could find him, maybe she could ask him to forgive her for leaving him alone, for letting him fight alone. _'Worthless little girl, in the end, you haven't changed a bit, you ran from the danger, after your speech that you would fight at his side… was all that a lie?'_ her mind taunted her _'No It wasn't, and I'm not worthless, they have shown me that I'm not, and he is still alive, meaning I can still fix that, we only have to find him, right? after all, a promise has no date of expiry. And I still have my friends with me, I have to look after them while he is missing, I can't be moping all day, It will be hypocrite of me after the scolding I gave him for doing that'_ she chuckled a little, she remembered his smile, the warm feeling she felt on her stomach when she looked at him in the eyes, she had it bad, huh? Dorothea would probably tease her no end If she knew _'I'm not worthy to be at his side after today... but that doesn't mean that I have to be like this forever right? thanks to him I improved myself, who says I can't do it more?'_ finishing her soup she went to sleep at her shared tent just to continue the search the next day. Sadly the search would never yield results.

After months of searching, one by one, each student parted separate ways, they couldn't be searching for him all their life, they had a home to return, some others went on their own devices to find a way to get stronger, others had to stabilize the situation at their territory, while others tried to find a way to help on this war. Edelgard put in panic all Fodlan, houses joining to the empire's cause, others trying to fight back, It was chaos, which brought death, suffering, and fear to everyone. One thing was certain for them, sooner or later this war would end, sooner or later their professor would come back, after all, they had promised to see each other at the millennium festival, whatever their professor was doing, he wouldn't break a promise, right?

For Bernadetta's part, she didn't stop searching, she tried to not lose hope, but seeing friend after friend leaving their group, she entered in a state of melancholy and worry, in the end, she was left alone. Would they be alive? Would they still be the same cheerful people that they once were? she didn't know, she couldn't know, she wanted to be with them, she wanted for all to be together like the family they once were, but all had their own thing to do, and the war was not kind, she knew that.

She tried to help any people she found on her search, one of them gave her a room on their inn as a token of thanks, which after minutes of convincing by the owner she accepted. The truth was, she didn't want to go back to her house, her father was there, meaning she would go back to the sad routine of feeling worthless, ignored, being seen as an object for money again. The room itself was comfy, small but had everything she needed from a bookshelf to a cabinet to put her vulnerary and arrows, she felt lonely, she was alone now like she was before, would the happy days return one day?, Would she see them again? she wondered, maybe a book would help her to distract herself from the situation she was in. Her professor was nowhere to be found, Where could he be? What could he be doing? she didn't know, she wanted to see all of them again._ 'Please everyone. be safe'_ with one last wish she opened her book and started to immerse herself in the story. How fast 5 years past would past when you were so accustomed to loneliness…

* * *

A figure was moving between trees, readying her bow aiming to her enemy '_breathe...release!' _an arrow flew through the sky, piercing a bandit's head. She immediately prepared another shot_. 'breathe...release!'_ another one pierced the heart of the partner of the previous one. She let out the breath she was holding, How long has it been? five years? How long has it been since the battle for Garreg Mach? How long since the last time she saw him…

Five years… had been kind to her, being far from her father did wonders to her, she started to take care of herself more, she trained day after day, to no longer be scared of fighting, she would no repeat the same mistake again. She was running in the forest near Gareg Mach, today was the millennium festival, meaning all of them would see each other again. It was near dawn, after all this time, she was returning to the place she once called home. The once holy place was now a hideout for thieves, It was sad to see from the distance how ruined the place was, in her path she managed to defeat any thief she found, soon she met with Ferdinand and Lindhart, both looked different, she immediately hugged them, they had kept their promise, and they were safe, she was hoping to find everyone else good and alive too. Sounds of swords clashing, guts being cut could be heard from the distance which the three of them soon followed, mounted on Ferdinand's horse, she took her bow and aimed to any bandit they encountered on her path… uh maybe using a horse while shooting would not be a bad idea…

After a few minutes they saw Caspar and Dorothea, fighting off some assassins, Caspar defended Dorothea while she used fire spells to kill off the assassins, they didn't notice one of them flanked Dorothea to the right. "Watch out Dorothea" screamed Bernie releasing an arrow aimed to the assassin head, which hit the target freezing the body in the middle of a jump, Dorothea looked at the body and then looked at the direction where the arrow came, only to see her friends again, her eyes showed excitement, she ran as fast as she could, Caspar did the same, the other three mounted off the horse and too ran to meet them, It's been five years since they saw each other.

"I'm glad you are all safe" said Dorothea hugging the three of them

"We missed you too Dorothea" said Lindhart

"Everything has been a mess, but a noble would never break a promise" said Ferdinand

"I'm happy to see you two well, where is Petra?" asked Bernie which caused Dorothea to soft her gaze at her, a small smile formed on her face "You wouldn't believe who came back and at this moment is fighting with Petra AND Seteth" said Dorothea, It didn't take long for Bernie to realize the meaning of those words.

"Where is he?" asked Bernie in panic, He… he was back, he kept his promise, she was looking everywhere, only to hear a high screech from a wyvern near them

"Is everyone ok?" said Seteth, even after 5 years he still looked the same

"Everyone, you are back" Petra said, hugging Bernadetta who was near her

"Oh I'm glad to see you too Petra" she hugged back. After five years, the original 6 members of the Black Eagle house were together again. Everyone looked so different but in a good way, even after 5 years of war, she could see they were still the same.

"I'm happy to see you again" that voice, she remembered it, behind Petra there he was, green eyes and hair, same black cloak, same black shirt, It looked like 5 years never passed for him "Professor Is that you?" Ferdinand asked in awe to see him again "It's good to see you again Ferdinand, that new haircut, looks nice…" he was suddenly interrupted by Bernadetta who tackled him in a hug leaving them both on the ground "I'm sorry for leaving 5 years ago, I'm so sorry Professor, please forgive me, I had to stay by your side but I didn't" Byleth couldn't comprehend why she was asking for forgiveness, he hugged her back and patted her head, "It's okay Bernadetta, you don't have to feel guilty about it, I ordered you to retreat anyway" he picked her face to met his gaze "What it matters it's we are all here now, together" he let a small smile out, causing to the lavender girl to blush, her heart started to beat faster, It was then that Seteth let out an awkward cough.

"Well I know you all haven't seen him in a while but let me remind you we have bandits to drive out of our home" said Seteth in which everyone agreed embarrassed, especially Bernadetta who wasn't keen to display affection in front of other people but did it in the spur of the moment. Byleth let out a gentle chuckle "You are right as always Seteth, Everyone, Will you fight by my side once more?" asked their professor who meet a unanimous response from his students.

"Whatever you go we'll follow Professor" said Caspar in which everyone agreed

"Well everyone, follow me, we have a house to clean, after that, how about a nice cup of tea?" which everyone answered excited, soon everyone followed him to finish the remaining bandits, except for Bernadetta who stayed there looking at her friends, there was something nostalgic seeing everyone fighting together again, a tear fell from her face which was cleaned immediately, she readied her bow, following them from the distance watching everyone's back, a new dawn coming from their backs.

* * *

Returning back to the monastery was something she had waited a lot, but seeing it in such deplorable state hurt her soul, how many memories, how many people met in this place?, such beautiful place was now just shadow of itself, at least their rooms were intact from the attack, It was a surprise to meet the others students who joined their house in the past, to meet Lysithea who Lindhart immediately greeted asking how she was, If she was feeling well If she had been eating well, and started to examine her as he had done to their professor after his transformation, which was funny, just seeing the flustered face she made, trying to threaten him with her magic only for him to say he could counter her spells as well, which caused the girl to let out a loud _'humpf'_ in defeat looking away with her arms crossed, Bernie could see a small smile on her face… hiding her true feelings as always.

To meet Felix who immediately asked their professor for a spar only to be elbowed in the stomach by Annette saying It wasn't the time to do that, they had work to do, just to walk to the church for clean duty whom he followed grumpily. To meet the Sylvain with Mercedes and see how much they had changed, Sylvain still a flirtatious man as ever but It looked like It was only with Mercedes, oh well at least he would not read her novels again. On the dining hall, she met Ignatz and Raphael who were helping with the reconstruction of the dining hall, according to him "The faster this is repaired the sooner we will eat after all eating is a vital part of training" same Raphael as always. Ingrid was at the stable checking all the animals, according to Felix and Sylvain they had to drag her back to the monastery, she didn't want to abandon Dimitri nor the kingdom, but they managed to convince her after guilt-tripping her with the promise she made to come back five years before , she looked sad, but after meeting with the professor her mood improved, Byleth really had a way with words even If they were so few…

What she didn't expect was to meet Marianne, even less to see her so… well, If this 5 years had been kind to her then for Marianne had been a complete makeover, she no longer had the bags on her eyes, she now looked everyone at the eyes, she walked with the elegance of someone of the nobility, which only improved her natural beauty. "Marie!" She let a loud squeal when she met her, Marianne did the same hugging the lavender girl, as If they had been friends for life. Well It was close, they had been kindred spirits in a strange way. After bumping each other by accident one day, they discovered how similar they were, how they saw themselves as worthless persons, both of them tried to comfort the other by trying to prove who was worse, which resulted in a strange competition, according to everyone, they competed by showing each other hobbies, drinking tea together and walking around the monastery together, just to show how horrible they were and how unfortunate was for the other to past time with them. Which result totally the opposite, they saw how good person they were, how caring, good friend was the other, soon they would usually past the time together each doing their own thing, not as a competition but because they enjoyed shared their free time together, like Bernie panting a picture of Marianne taking care of the animals, or Marianne helping Bernie with her novels by reading them and giving her honest opinion, It was only matter of time for them to be in the same class, after all, Marianne too had a good relationship with the professor. That only improve their friendship more, It was common for them to enjoy tea together in Bernie's room after class or to pray together at the church.

Soon Lysithea joined the house too, she was someone with a cold exterior but sweet inside If you had the right sweets for her, Bernadetta and Marianne would usually invite her for tea, just to see the girl relaxing, she was a hard worker but she didn't know when to stop and her presence was pleasant. It also helped she was one of the best students of the class, she helped them a lot with their homework and exams and in return Bernadetta cooked her favorite sweets, It was only a matter of time for the girl to join their group of close friends. With Marianne and Lysithea in the same class, a student called the trio the _'must protect squad'_ a name until this day she didn't comprehend the meaning of it.

"Where have you been all this time Bernie?" asked Marianne

"Well, I've been searching for the professor, I stayed at an inn near here and in a blink of an eye five years passed hehe" Bernadetta said a little embarrassed "But enough about me, what have you been doing Marie, you look more beautiful than ever" complimented Bernadetta which caused the Bishop to blush

"Well, It's thanks to all of you actually, you gave the motivation to take care of myself, you prove me how wrong it was my self-image, so I asked my father to teach me more about how to be a noble and so here we are" she let out short laugh, a little embarrassed, she was not used to hearing compliments even after five years.

"And Lorenz where is he?" asked Bernadetta, truth to be told Marie and Lorenz grew closer in their time at the academy even If their friendship had a rough start. Marianne's face changed to a sad expression, she lowered her gaze to the floor "he is an ally of the empire now, I tried to convince him to come back here but…"

"I know, something about the responsibility of a noble, right?" Bernadetta tried to comfort the girl giving a squeeze on her shoulder "A noble must be always in favor of the commoners, nobility this, nobility that and my haircut is horrible" she imitated Lorenz in a mocking way which only caused Marie to laugh "Yeah that sounds like him, I wish he was with us though, I can't imagine fighting against him" Bernadetta looked at her friend, and gave her another hug "Don't worry Marie, the professor will give him a good scolding, so good that he will return to us, I promise, If not, don't worry I will give him a good punch in the head and bring him here by force, after all no one hurts my Marie" Marianne smiled, how far her friend has improved, five years before If she had heard those words coming from Bernadetta she would probably think she was going crazy or it was some kind of delirious dream. She hugged her friend back "Thanks Bernie, I know you will do it" she chuckled "I'm really glad that everyone is back, and doing well" she broke apart the hug "By the way I saw the professor some time ago and he looked like he was lost in thought, Has something happened?" asked Marianne, trying to cause a reaction on Bernadetta "Huh? that's strange he looked normal just a few hours ago, what could have happened?" Bernadetta asked back, he had laughed and smiled during their reunion on the dining hall which was a little destroyed and unkept by the years of abandonment, but for them, It was the perfect place for their reunion, what could be causing him such distress?

"Well, won't you go and see your man?" asked Marianne with a smug smile, which shocked Bernadetta, since when her friend was this sassy? what happened to the sweet and timid girl from five years ago, what type of noble training she went through? "What… what are you talking about?" her cheeks were now a hot mess "Well, wasn't you who brought him back after Edelgard betrayal? I remember both of you entering side by side to the dining hall and he had a little doll that looked like you" a gaze of _'I know what you did Bernadetta'_ met Bernie, which caused more embarrassment on the girl "You… you saw that?" which Marianne replied "Don't worry your secret is safe with me Bernie, but your crush is really obvious, you should try to hide it more, I can't believe no one had noticed it before" since when she was this keen? "or maybe it is that I know you better, and I can notice when you blush when you see him in the eyes" that smug smile never left her face, oh gods this five years had created a monster, she was cornered, so she just did the most logical thing to do, run as fast as she could from the scene screaming _'don't look at me'_ while running, which caused her friend to laugh "some things never change" said Marianne, true to be told, her mouth was dry from the nervousness trying to be smug for the first time, It was a pleasant feeling, maybe she will try it more in the future, especially on Bernadetta, she was, after Hilda, the girl who knew better. She would use Bernie as target practice, after all, she had a lot of material to tease her, It's not like it will bite her back later, right? It's not like Bernadetta would seek vengeance on her… right?

"I swear Marianne, when Lorenz comes back, you will pay for this" said Bernadetta while her face was buried in her pillow, her room after all this time hadn't changed a bit, she was thinking in the best ways to tease her friend back, If her friend was going to tease her then two can play that game, an evil smile was drawn on Bernadetta's face with an idea in mind to pay back her friend, only to be interrupted by the knock of the door. "Who's there?" asked the lavender girl.

"It's me Byleth, Can I come in?" the professor was looking for her? What could he need? maybe It was something about Marianne said before "yes, come in professor" he entered, with something on his hand.

"Hello Bernadetta, how are you doing?" asked him

"I'm better now professor, thanks for asking, sorry for the hug from before by the way" she laughed nervously which he only shook his head "It's not a problem, hugs are always welcome Bernadetta, you are my friend after all" he said with a small smile on his face

Oh there It was his killer smile 'Control yourself Bernie' "What do you have on your hand?" asked her to her professor

"Oh I like what you did to your hair, are you trying to get it longer?" he tried to avoid her question

"Actually yes professor, thanks for noticing, but It takes time, like a lot" she blushed a little, she was glad he noticed her new style... wait he was avoiding her question! "But Professor, you didn't answer, what do you have on your hand?" asked the lavender girl

He, knowing he won't dodge the question, sheepishly showed his gift to her "It's a gift from five years ago, I couldn't find the time to give you before, I hope you like it" it was a small box with a green ribbon on it, she opened just to see a small doll who just looked like him "It's only fair for you to have one too, It's my first time making one, so I hope It meets your expectations" Bernadetta looked at _'little Byleth'_ a small smile draw on her face, she hugged the doll "it's perfect professor, thanks so much" Byleth let out his breath "I'm glad you like it Bernadetta, It's only fair after the one you gave me had helped me when..." he cut his words, like he was second-guessing something, like he was not sure to finish his sentence.

"Ahm professor, how did my doll help you?" she asked curiously, only to meet a uncomfortable silence for a few moments, she noticed the dreadful expression on his face, It only worried her "Professor, please, I'm your ally, I made a promise, remember?" which only cause more guilt on his soul, of course, that promise again, he wasn't sure to tell her but she had already been there for him on his worse, what could go wrong… Oh, Sothis If only she was here to tell him what to do…

"When I woke up and got here, the first person I met was Edelgard" he said while looking at the ground sad, Bernadetta soon realized what it meant, of course, Edelgard would be a sensitive subject for him, seeing her after five years must have been shock for him, a knot formed in her throat. Deep inside her, she didn't want to know anything about her, she had been the catalyst for this war to happen, she was the responsible for all the suffering they had been through this five years "What happened?" asked Bernadetta, even though she didn't what to, he needed to talk with someone about her, to let out his emotions out.

"She was surprised to find me there, she was waiting for all of you…" the statement surprised Bernadetta, she didn't hate them? and she was waiting for them? she soon realized what it meant "She was waiting for us to convince us to join her, right?" Byleth just nodded, so even after this years she hoped for them to join her?, the nerve, Did she forget what happened that day on the battle for the monastery? how her soldiers tried to kill them without remorse? The way she saw them as enemies? It only angered Bernadetta more.

"She tried the same with me, the look of her eyes, they felt so lonely, so lost, She has bags on her eyes, whatever happened these five years haven't been kind to her Bernadetta. She was expecting my answer and I… didn't know what to do, I wanted to help her, she had been my student, my friend, and when we met she looked so happy to see me. When I was going to give my answer, your doll fell from my pockets" he picked the doll from his right pocket, looking at it with a gentle smile "It made me remember, who were with me when I needed it, with who I shared the last meal before the battle, who was with me when I was lost in grief, what we tried to defend that day" Bernadetta heart skipped a lot of beats, seeing him looking at her gift, carrying it with such care, with such smile, listening to him how her gift helped him, she tried her best to contain her excitement, her happiness, the urge to hug him, she was glad to have made that doll to him "I declined her offer and she didn't take it well… We clashed swords for while until we had each other sword at our throats" she immediately jumped to check on him "Are you hurt anywhere?, we can ask for Lindhart to check on you professor" who just let out a small laugh "Don't worry, It's just small bruises, we didn't try to kill each other… Well, at least I didn't. Though, she warned me before she left, that the next time I see her, one of us will die." She looked at him in silence, analyzing what he had just said, so the next time will be the last for good… "And how do you feel Professor?" asked Bernadetta, he looked away from her, trying to contain his feelings again but Bernadetta would have none of it.

Gently she put a hand on his right cheek moving his face, his eyes met hers, they were just a few centimeters apart "Byleth" she said in a gentle tone, she wasn't talking with her professor right now, she was talking with her friend Byleth, a friend who she made a promise to listen to his problems, a friend who needed her right now "How are you feeling?" she asked again in a softer tone "Byleth we are alone, you can be honest with me" Byleth met again those grey eyes from five years ago, they weren't the eyes of her student Bernadetta, the timid girl who couldn't handle a proper conversation with anyone, they were the eyes of Bernadetta, her friend, the girl who helped him when he was in grief long time ago, those eyes displayed warm, care and attention to him, they looked deep in his soul as if they knew what he was thinking, he couldn't go against them, he let his grief out "I don't think I can do it… I don't think I can kill her. It's like I had to kill one of you, I just can't, I watched you grow as your professor, and I care for all of you. And that's not the worst of it, Seteth wants me to lead the knights of Seiros against the empire, It's been just a day since I woke up and everyone sees me as their salvation, as their hope, I know it's my duty" he then touched his chest, where was his heart, remembering how the little goddess gave her power to save him from the eternal darkness, after that event he knew It was his duty to use his new power to help the people, to guide them "But I don't know If I can, I had failed already and I don't know If I can get everyone alive from this war, just thinking any of you dying for my fault I…" a tear appeared on his cheek, he had failed to his father, he had failed Sothis, even with his divine pulse to turn back time, he knew his power was limited, at any moment he could fail and that scared him, he felt a thumb rubbing his cheek wiping his tears, a warm hand over his left, he continued "If I have to kill Edelgard to end this war… I don't know If I can, I wish to save her, to have her with us, like It was before, but knowing her, she would die first before yielding" he knew how stubborn Edelgard was, how close her view of the world could be "I feel alone Bernie, alone in this unknown path that life offers me, I'm afraid, Can I keep you all safe in this war?, Can we all see the end of it together? I want to believe It but as a mercenary I know that is wishful thinking and I…"

He was interrupted by a tight hug from the lavender girl, she started to gently stroke his hair, causing him to be lost in the comfort it gave him "Who says you have to be alone in this? no one should walk their path alone, we have to rely on each other to succeed, no one can carry the weight alone, you don't have too Byleth" she broke apart the hug, putting her hand on his cheek again looking at him in the eyes with a smile "You can count on all of us to help you in this war, that's why we came, because when we are with you, we feel stronger, we feel protected, we all know you care for us, you are a wonderful person Byleth, even If you don't want to worry everyone with the weight of your responsibility then let some to me, you don't have to go through this alone, you don't have to fight alone, I too will protect our friends, I will be at your side watching your sides and back, I will protect you from any harm and when the time comes…" she paused letting out the breath she was holding "We will fight Edelgard together, as we did five years ago, we will find a way to win without killing her. And If we fail, I want you to know that doesn't make you less the great man you are Byleth, and If you feel down again you can come to my room, I will offer my shoulder for you to cry on, and maybe we can eat cake with tea, your favorite" tears didn't stop coming from his face as a smile was drawn on his face, he felt at peace, happy to heard someone thinks so highly of him, even If he didn't deserve it, maybe he didn't have to fight this war alone, maybe he could rely on Bernadetta, again, a warm feeling surface from his chest as five years ago "What did I do to deserve you?" he thought loudly, which caused her to smile even more, her smile was warm, like he had said the sweetest thing in the world to her "Just being you Byleth… you were the one who made go out of my room, you were the one who made me talk to people, you were the one to make me feel like I was a human being, you helped me to fight against my fear, to grow as a person, and It's not only for me, I can say you made the same for everyone here. Thank you for taking care of us" he stopped crying, feeling less stressed than before "And I will do it a thousand times over Bernadetta" he looked at her with determination. Today he found a new reason to fight, a new reason to protect everyone, he would win this war for a dawn where they could enjoy the peaceful days again, where he could share a meal with his students without the worries of war.

"Please call me Bernie professor, we have known each other for some time, I like Bernie more and it's easier than my full name" corrected Bernadetta, after all, they were friends more than student and teacher, he chuckled a little "Then call me Byleth" he liked when she called his name, for some reason It sounded so peaceful when she said it. Bernie was happy how close they grew, she could finally say his name, meaning he no longer saw her as a student but as a true friend, it was a huge step for her. But life would give her one last surprise.

He suddenly approached her and kiss her on her forehead "Thanks for everything Bernie, I don't know where would I be If I hadn't met you" then he hugged her, both of them falling to her bed, If someone would ask him why he did that, he would only say that he was just listening to the strange feeling he had on his chest, he needed to express his thanks for her help, for calming his mind, and her hugs always calmed his nerves, he always found peace at his heart when she was hugging him.

Meanwhile, the girl was trying to process what just happened, he had just kissed on her forehead? as friends right? there was no double meaning about this right? and he was hugging her… what just happened? her thoughts were interrupted by him "Can we stay like this? until Seteth knows that I'm missing or needs me to plan our war strategy" she just let out a gentle laugh "Who knew you were so lazy Byleth" he just let out a grunt, she started to stroke his hair again, she could feel his body relaxing by it, whatever this could mean she will enjoy it_ 'He would be lost without me huh?'_ she thought which caused the girl to smile _'I would be lost too without you, quite pair we make…'_ after a few minutes the pair would drive to the world of dreams, just to wake just in time for the hour of tea.

* * *

**If you want more stories about our favorite shut-in go read 'A Chance for a New Dawn' From LostCipher999, It's on this site, I've been reading it and I highly recommend it. The next chapter will be about the daily lives of the gang during the war (with the vengeance of Berndetta against Marianne) or about their encounter against Edie. What do you prefer?**


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